


Thunderstruck

by HoltzmannRadioTimes



Category: Ghostbusters (2016)
Genre: Backstory, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, Flirting, Fluff and Humor, Holtzbert - Freeform, Hurt/Comfort, I literally don't know how to tag this without giving anything away, Non-Graphic Violence, Pre-Holtzbert fluff, Rambling, Scary, Slash, ghostbusting, nervous Erin, no one dies, there i said it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-13
Updated: 2016-09-19
Packaged: 2018-08-14 19:31:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 6,715
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8026144
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HoltzmannRadioTimes/pseuds/HoltzmannRadioTimes
Summary: “Love is like electricity sometimes; it may shock you anytime, yet you cannot live without it.” - Munia Khan





	1. A Sad Existence For a Sad Place

It had been nearly a lifetime since Erin had been in a place like this. 

The last time had been when the old lady next door shuffled off this mortal coil when she herself was 7, _but _just before the dearly departed neighbor made a habit of nightly visits to Erin’s childhood bedroom.__

‘A sad existence for a sad place,’ she thought to herself as she opened the car door, a breeze giving her a chill.  
No good memories could ever be attached to a place like this, Erin couldn’t imagine. 

A hearse, not a familiar hearse but a hearse none-the-less, was parked outside the entrance under the pillared awning when they arrived; the parking lot was completely full of vehicles as well, with cars lining the street in both directions. As Erin walked through the doors, a comforting thought occupied her mind for one distracting moment- how lovely it was that so many people would go out of their way to attend someone’s funeral… She hoped to be so lucky to be so loved one day. 

It occurred to Erin she had never considered how a place like that could be so alive, and yet so dead all at the same time. 

‘No good memories could be attached to a place like this,’ she thought again.

Patty and Abby appeared by her side, similarly dressed and with the same solemn expression. They hated being here just as much as she did. 

The lobby was nicely decorated, a few overstuffed couches here and there, wood trim adorning the walls, flowers _everywhere _…__

Erin was doing ok when they first arrived, but she shortly found herself growing more uncomfortable with every step she took down the hall, every step toward the group’s ultimate destination, and the reason they were there this day. She stopped short of the adjoining room, pausing when she recognized the slight smell of incense in the air. 

This was too real. 

“Come on, baby, we gotta go,” Patty whispered. Abby put a hand on Erin’s shoulder as they entered, staying close to her side. 

Near the opposite end of the room was a casket with its top open; it was simple yet elegant, brown, with flowers flanking either side. Erin made a brief mental note of the scene’s serene loveliness. 

The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. So quiet in fact, Erin could hear their shoes brushing the carpet as they walked.  
She didn’t realize carpet could be so loud. ‘Why was this horrid carpet so loud?’ she cursed in her mind. 

After what seemed like a quarter-mile walk, Erin, Abby, and Patty came upon the aforementioned casket. It’s lining was light yellow, silk, with stars embroidered throughout. She now noticed that the slick wooden exterior was adorned with gold fixtures, it looked like it cost a fortune. 

And there, right in the center of this oddly lovely, completely loathsome box was their friend, Jillian Holtzmann. 

The blonde looked so tiny, her eyes closed, cheeks so rosy, her yellow glasses shining under the recessed lighting.

“Have you ever seen her look so peaceful?” Abby sniffled, taking a tissue out of her pocket to wipe her nose. 

Blinking thoughtfully, Erin took a step closer, careful not to knock over Holtz’s proton pack, which was ever-so-nicely perched against the front of the casket. She leaned over her dear friend, brow knit, and with a sigh she reached in to take Jillian’s hand, gently squeezing it in her own. 

 

_Holtzmann’s hand squeezed back._

 

“Are you quite finished?” asked Erin. 

A smile grew on Holtzmann’s lips and she peeked one eye open to look up at the redhead. “Five more minutes, Mom?” 

“Holtz, you gotta get out of there before Patty’s uncle sees you,” Abby interjected with a slight hint of disappointment.

“But it’s just my size!” Holtz whined. 

“I’m pretty sure this one’s for display only, buddy” Abby assured her. 

“Alllriiiiight” Holtz groaned, her fun now over. 

“…adding _this _to my list of ‘completely inappropriate ‘Holtzmanisms,’’” Patty said disapprovingly, shaking her head.__

“Hey, at least I didn’t try to scare you guys.” 

“You scare me literally every day.” 

Patty huffed, fired up her proton pack, and headed into the next room. 

Abby blew her nose. “Ugh… incense. Let’s go before _I _die.”__

“Coming…” Holtz struggled to get out of the casket, kicking over her proton pack, and falling backwards a little taking some flowers down with her.  
Erin rolled her eyes and followed Patty and Abby into the next room. “I can’t take you anywhere,” she exhaled over her shoulder.  
“Ahh… we have fun.” Holtz slung her pack on and fired it up in one fluid motion, belying her previous awkwardness. 

She followed up the rear of the group, covering their backs with a showy flourish of her gun, stepping low backwards into the room behind them. “All clear!”


	2. In Erin’s World Full of Negatives, Jillian Holtzmann Was Wealthy In Positives.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everything starts as somebody's daydream.

“I’m kinda surprised we haven’t been called out to one of these places before now. One would think these joints would be jumping with spirits,” Abby mused, stuffing her tissue back into the pocket of her coveralls.

“I know my Uncle has seen some shit, but he’s probably used to it. Remind me to _not _have him tell you some stories sometime…”__

Holtz wagged her eyebrows at Patty upon hearing _that _tidbit.__

“Stop it.” 

They came to a halt in the middle of a large-ish funeral hall just as all the lights blinked out. The room was in complete disarray. Chairs strewn everywhere, a path cleared as though something heavy had been dragged through the room, a few windows had been broken, and an exterior door was knocking in the breeze. It was apparent that a lot of people had beaten a hasty retreat from this place not too long ago. The atmosphere was heavy, and the room was dimly lit from the skylight on this cloudy, most likely soon-to-be-rainy, day. 

Plus, now all the lights were out. Perfect. 

“Alright, guys, what do we know?” whispered Abby, beating her proton gun in her hand like a club. 

“We’ve got not one, but TWO class 4 apparitions, based on what I could glean from the message Kevin took,” Erin reported, looking over her shoulder constantly, as though she was trying to catch a ghost in two places at once. 

“…and that can be corroborated by the dozens of terrified funeral-goers that came screaming out of the south _and _north sides of the building as we pulled up,” Holtzmann delighted. She had made a point of excitedly running in as everyone else was running out. Her teammates thought it was, perhaps, to use the restroom, but we now know that it wasn't.__

“I want to say we should split up…” prescribed Abby. 

“Please don’t say that, please don’t say that…” Erin whispered to herself, closing her eyes, the words coming out of her mouth like a prayer. 

A hand landed sharp on her shoulder, shocking her out of it. 

“I say safety in numbers,” Holtzmann recommended with a wink. “What’s that they say, two heads are better than one?” 

Holtz’s grip turned into a comforting hand and patted Erin’s shoulder. Erin let out a sigh of relief, and gave the blonde a thankful smile.

“Yea, I second that,” added Patty.

“Teams it is, by popular demand,” Abby announced. “Erin, you’re with Holtz, since you protested so much last time about _not _being with Holtz.”__

Holtzmann smiled at Erin, eyebrows raised, _this _was new information. “… _Really _?"____

Erin looked between Abby and Holtzmann, “That’s… that’s not…. I just think we need… uh, well, because…”

“I think what President Garfield is _trying _to say is I require a certain level of supervision,” she said with a flourish of her hand. “Not sure if you know this, but I’m told I can be a handful.”__

“Uh, huh,” Abby smirked. “Come on Patty, let’s go back through the parlor. I saw a particularly spooky-looking hallway near the front we should investigate.” 

“Oh, good.” Sarcasm was Patty’s second language. “I vote we try and find some non-spooky hallways too, alright?”

As they disappeared, Erin and Holtz continued to explore their own current room occupation.

Holtz broke the silence first.

“If you wanted to be alone with me, all you had to do was ask. My dance card is currently empty,” she offered, clicking her tongue.

“You’re… empty,” was Erin’s attempt at a comeback. _"That doesn’t even make sense" _she whisper-scolded herself.__

...Swing and a miss...

But even though Erin’s smarts were failing her in the talking department at this current moment, Holtzmann was there with that notorious wink again.

How does she do it? In Erin’s world full of negatives, Jillian Holtzmann was wealthy in positives.

Erin’s mind drifted off into a daydream of covalent bonds… positives and negatives… the law of attraction… forgetting how nervous she was to be there for a moment.

Snapping to, Erin cut the silence again. “I don’t know why this place gets to me. I mean, I leapt into an unknown abyss of almost certain death to save my best friend, but funeral homes… forget about it.” ...Ok, maybe she did know...

“Mmm,” Holtz nodded understandingly. She herself hated funeral homes, but she had her own reasons, not that she intended on getting into that today. “Let’s see if we can follow the path of destruction and smoke these party-crashers out."

 

Back in the other room, Abby and Patty’s own investigation was underway. All the funeral goers had dispersed and the whole place was, for lack of a better term, a ghost town by now.

“It’s weird that I don’t hear or smell anything out of the ordinary. I mean, I don’t spend a lot of time in funeral homes, but…then again, my sinuses _are _pretty stuffy right now.” Abby rubbed her nose on her sleeve.__

__“Naw, this is pretty much the norm, you ain’t missing much,” Patty said peeking into a coatroom. “Man, where _are _these ghosts? Unc interrupted my Great British Bakeoff marathon for this mess."_ _ __

__“Ohhh, I love that show too!”_ _

__"Mmmhmm."_ _

__They moved on toward the basement. Abby tried a light switch at the top of the stairs- nothing. The power appeared to be off all over the building now. As they stepped over the threshold they stopped cold, the energy in the air around them had shifted and became suddenly very heavy._ _

__Palpably heavy._ _

__“Did you feel that?”_ _

__“Girl, you know I did."_ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I may post another chapter tonight if I get antsy enough. If not, tomorrow for sure.


	3. Anywhere But Here

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I keep myself busy with things I do, but every time I pause I still think of you."  
> -Emilia Löfberg, Reality

Holtzmann was humming to herself while the duo circumnavigated the room, as she was wont to do when things were too quiet. An idle Holtzmind was a dangerous thing.

Erin on the other hand was alphabetically listing the elements of the periodic table in her head, something she'd taken to doing in times of great stress as a distraction.

_What a pair. ___

__As much as she would like to talk out the stress she was currently experiencing with someone, _hell even Holtzmann would do, she was a good listener _, this was neither the time nor the place.___ _

____Erin dipped into a room… a sacristy? Like the room behind the alter in a church? Did that apply, she wondered, since this wasn’t actually a church? Well, whatever one would call it, she figured she would to rule it out as a possible specter hiding spot for good measure._ _ _ _

____Holtzmann continued into an adjacent room, moving a torn curtain out of the way and stepping over two downed potted ficus plants in the doorway._ _ _ _

____Things were quiet._ _ _ _

____She spied a displaced bookshelf, its books strewn in a path across the room. Scanning the area from left to right, following the path of tomes, she suddenly heard a low crackling sound and her spectacles landed on a young boy hiding behind an armchair in the corner, startling her ever so slightly._ _ _ _

____Holtz played it cool, but she knew he probably shouldn’t be there. “Hey, little dude. Where are your parents?”_ _ _ _

____He stood up from his hiding place and stepped into the open, dusting off his shirt, “Same as yours.” “That’s not funny…” she began to reply before she had a chance to really think about what was happening._ _ _ _

____“Holtz, who are you talking to?” Erin came up behind her._ _ _ _

____Holtzmann spun a full 360, eyes wide and somewhat manic. The kid was gone._ _ _ _

____She shrugged her response, having nothing to show. _Where did he go so fast? _____ _ _

______“Ok, well, let's keep moving. I’d like to get out of here before it starts raining. It’d be a shame to waste a lovely rainy day trapped inside with ghosts,” Erin lamented, looking out the window, wishing she was anywhere but there._ _ _ _ _ _

______Holtz suddenly had a very bad feeling about what she just encountered, but didn’t want to upset Erin if she didn’t have to. Not yet, anyway. She decided to stay quiet about her visitor for the time being. They would surely meet again, if her hunch was correct._ _ _ _ _ _

______ _ _ _ _

______Now in the basement, Patty and Abby were getting a chance to try out Holtzmann’s seemingly most common and altogether _practical _invention yet- night vision goggles that were sensitive enough to pick up every kind of energy on the spectrum. They could practically _see _sound with these babies._____ _ _ _ _ _

__________“You can see a ghost farting from a mile away” Holtzmann had elucidated, a colorful image none of the other ladies appreciated._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Farts are the ghosts of the food we eat,” Kevin announced, looking up from his magazine and smiling, proud of his contribution._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Abby often wondered if he was some sort of idiot savant. Erin had this same thought independent of Abby, though neither of them ever said it out loud._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“This guy gets it,” Holtzmann smiled, throwing a thumb in his direction._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“What’s that?” Patty pointed to the opposite end of the basement. There was a swinging door, the kind you would see in restaurant kitchens, and there appeared to be a light shining through the porthole window. “I thought all the lights were out.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Abby lifted her goggles to take a look at the light source but once they were off, the room was black again. Back on, there was the light. She took them off again and realized that _wasn’t _a typical light.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“I don’t have a good feeling about this,” Abby said with a furrowed brow._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________“As well you shouldn’t. There’s actual dead people down here, ain’t nobody feeling good about this place.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________They approached carefully, keeping their fingers on the trigger of their proton guns. Abby gently pressed the door open into the room._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Much to their surprise, though literally _anything _would have been a surprise, just inside the door was an old upright piano, and a small girl, maybe about 7 years old sitting on the bench, head in hand, elbow resting above middle C while she lazily tinked out a tune that sounded hauntingly familiar._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Each was sure they had heard it before, but it wouldn’t be until much later that either of them would be able to put a finger on it._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________“Any requests?” The words came out of the girl’s mouth with a grizzled maturity of a seasoned lounge performer._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

______________Swallowing the lump in her throat, Abby lifted up her night vision goggles again- _yep, still dark. _____ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________"Uhh… what… what are you doing down here?” She stifled a nervous laugh when the girl responded, suddenly lifting her eyes at the pair._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________________“Waiting for you.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...B, D#, B, C#, A...


	4. Anywhere But Here, Part 2: Anywhere With You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ...Lightning in a bottle, straight into the core... anywhere but here...

Ok, maybe Erin _did _want to talk about it here, now. Talking’s fine. They can stalk ghosts _and _talk, she was capable of multitasking, she’s a _great _multitasker.______

______She startled Holtz a little with her sudden ramp in conversation._ _ _ _ _ _

______“I think I’ve only ever been to one funeral that I can remember... dodged a few, though, I know that.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Holtz kept pushing on through one corridor and down the next, but Erin knew she was listening._ _ _ _ _ _

______“When my mean neighbor lady died, the one I told you about, we went to her funeral. At the time, I was terrified that she would pop out of her grave and attack me or something, as ridiculous as that sounded. I never imagined she would come back as a ghost and haunt me in my own house.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Holtz glanced back with a knowing look._ _ _ _ _ _

______While Erin droned on about how “places like this kinda give me PTSD… makes me worried another ghost is gonna follow me home again… especially since I know that’s not out of the realm of possibilities…” Holtz was wishing that she and Erin were back at headquarters sitting on the couch having hot coco while Erin talked this out instead…_ _ _ _ _ _

______... or up on the roof with Erin and hot coco…_ _ _ _ _ _

______... or in Central Park with Erin…._ _ _ _ _ _

______... anywhere but here...with Erin…_ _ _ _ _ _

______Because as much as her heart was cracking listening to this wonderful woman open up about her unfortunate history, Holtz couldn’t help but be on guard, worried that kid was going to pop up again._ _ _ _ _ _

______She knew he would, it was only a matter of _when, _but Erin deserved her undivided attention on this. _“Don’t worry your pretty little head, Er. I won’t let any ghosts follow you home. Not enough seats in the Ecto.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Erin snorted a small laugh, glad Holtz understood._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________The girl began to stand from the piano bench, eyes still locked on Abby and Patty._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Do you want to play with me?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Her tiny shape was starting to… morph?… grow? Whatever was happening, they did _not _want to stick around to watch the metamorphosis.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Oh, HELL NO,” Patty exploded._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________The noise that escaped Abby’s throat can’t be described, but let’s just say terror was being served up fresh in the basement._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________She let the door swing shut and they threw a bunch of chairs in front of it, as if chairs could keep whatever this thing was at bay._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________They booked it back up the hall toward the basement stairs._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________One flight… round the corner… two flights…_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Was it still behind them?_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Didn’t know._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Wasn’t gonna wait to find out._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Just as they reached the door, it SLAMMED shut, because, of course it did._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________They both crashed into it, Abby face-first, Patty compounding the damage by slamming the shorter of the two harder against it just from sheer momentum._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Abby was definitely going to have a black eye after that one._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Patty tried the door knob. No dice. It wasn’t even turning._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Sliding down the door to a crouching position, Abby turned to face the place from which they had just come._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Putting her goggles back on… gently… she could see that the light was slowly creeping its way around the bend of the stairs._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Ghost puncher?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Ghost puncher.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wanted to put out two chapters today, I'm so antsy to get this whole thing out. Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think, I'd love to hear from you. Thanks, everyone! Hope y'all are having a great Wednesday.


	5. That's What You Get

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "...it was the sort of bone-deep emotion that made her want to want to hold her tighter with one hand, and draw a sword against the world with the other..."  
> ― Jeaniene Frost, First Drop of Crimson

Erin was following Holtz up to the second floor where there was a mezzanine overlooking the big hall.

For the record, she was definitely _not _checking out the cute behind that just _happened _to be sashaying up the stairs at eye level ahead of her.____

____Erin had a feeling Holtz knew what she was doin’, too. There was a little more swing in those hips than was necessary for stairs, not that you'd hear her complaining._ _ _ _

____As they ascended, Erin realized she could hear the carpet again. It sounded… crunchy… but she could tell it was soft under her feet when she walked._ _ _ _

____Those two things were incongruous._ _ _ _

____Glancing at Holtzmann’s boots as they came in contact with the stairs, she could see the source of the sound now._ _ _ _

____There it was, with every step, little electrical charges. Static electricity?_ _ _ _

____Usually that would be a pretty typical reaction to shoes on carpet, but Erin had never seen static sparks like this, and the atmosphere was decidedly anything but dry that day._ _ _ _

____Blue and dense, crackling like the sound of a hundred tiny bones being crushed… Oh, God, what a terrible correlation _that _was. She had obviously spent too much time in this dead person halfway house today for her liking…___ _ _ _

______“Holtz, do you see this?” She held her arm out to stop her on the stairs and pushed past her, pointing at her own feet as she walked._ _ _ _ _ _

______Holtzmann tilted her head, spying the sparks, “Humph. That’s funny, I always assumed you were walking on sunshine.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“That’s a terrible line, even for you.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“You loved it.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“What do you think is causing this?” Erin asked, casually stepping out onto the mezzanine to take a look around._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Well, I’m going to go out on a limb here and say… ghosts?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Erin lifted her eyebrows at that. “I can get on board with that hypothesis.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Jillian cleared her throat, now was the time to spill the beans. “I didn’t want to mention it downstairs, but when you heard me talking to…”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Just then, the doors between them slammed shut eliciting utter confusion and slight panic from both of them._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Erin!”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Holtz, I’m ok…”_ _ _ _ _ _

______Shaking the handles, Jillian thought she could hear another voice on the other side of the door with Erin but she couldn’t make it out._ _ _ _ _ _

______She pressed her ear up to the door. She was correct._ _ _ _ _ _

______Behind Erin, the little boy Holtz had encountered had appeared. “You’re ruining all our fun,” he expressed grumpily through gritted teeth._ _ _ _ _ _

______Erin turned around slowly and her eyes widened when she saw him standing there. Not knowing what else to do in such close proximity, she introduced herself._ _ _ _ _ _

______“Hello…I’m Erin. I’m one of the Ghostbusters. Are you… lost?”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Oh, we know who you are.”_ _ _ _ _ _

______"We...?"_ _ _ _ _ _

______Holtz could just barely hear their conversation through the door, but she knew it was probably not going to end well._ _ _ _ _ _

______The boy started to move slowly toward Erin, blue sparks swirling up from every step._ _ _ _ _ _

______Nope, that was not static electricity._ _ _ _ _ _

______Erin now knew where she had seen sparks like those before… the infamous Rowan episode… and realized that this was no ordinary kid either…_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Oh, no…”_ _ _ _ _ _

______“Erin, get out of there!” Holtz yelled through the door, banging on it with her fist._ _ _ _ _ _

______Erin made the mistake of looking toward Holtz’s commotion, because that’s when the boy, the ghost, whatever, pulled the same shape-shifting nonsense as the other one her cohorts had come upon in the basement and lunged at Erin, engulfing her completely and lifting her off the ground _and _off the balcony.___ _ _ _ _ _

________Holtz heard Erin scream and then everything after that was a blur because Holtzmann went absolutely berserk at the sound of Erin in danger._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Jillian stepped back several paces then ran full-force into the doors with her shoulder, aided, thankfully, by the side of her proton pack, breaking right on through._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Adrenaline was pumping through her body. In regard to “fight or flight” responses, Holtz’s reactions could definitely be categorized under 'fight.' She had once punched Abby by mistake when the brunette snuck up on her while she was toweling off her hair after a shower._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________The ghost was thrashing Erin about, shaking her like a toddler with a rattle in the air above the hall, laughing like it was a game._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Erin screamed again, this time using the word ‘help’ which alarmed Holtzmann even further._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Jillian looked around, assessing what resources she had at her disposal. Her ears were ringing, blood pumping to her brain._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________She needed a quick way to get back down to the main floor; she also realized that at this juncture she couldn’t use any of her weapons, at least not while the ghost had Erin in its grip so high off the ground._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________To her right, at the edge of the balcony, she spied a rope tied off to a cleat on the wall._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Following the rope with her eyes she was pleased to see that it held aloft the huge chandelier that hung over the room._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Suddenly possessed by the ghost of Douglas Fairbanks (one could only assume) she loosened the rope from its tether and attempted to swing down to the floor below, Robin Hood-style…_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________She would have succeeded too, if it hadn’t been for the unseen electrical wiring connected to the chandelier through the ceiling._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________When it snapped loose under Holtz’s weight, it sent a charge down the line, shocking her, causing her to lose her grip and do a belly flop onto the floor just south of her desired landing point._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________The chandelier came crashing down thereafter._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________It was a spectacular sight to behold, that is, if anyone else had been around to see it. But, since they hadn’t, and Erin was preoccupied, Holtz was going to tell that part of the story a little differently for their files._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Sitting up in a daze, the intrepid engineer shook out her sore hands and rubbed her stomach with a groan. “Electrocution: 0/10, would not recommend.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Back in the basement, Abby and Patty were preparing for battle._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________As soon as the ghost materialized around the corner Abby sucker-punched it right back down the stairs, and, hopefully, back to whatever astral plane from whence it came._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Had she succeeded? Again, didn’t know, wasn’t gonna wait to find out. Escape was paramount._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“That’s what you GET!" Patty screamed back down the stairs, turning to Abby with a proud grin, “Imma high-five you later.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Abby immediately turned to use the puncher on the unyielding door behind them and blew it right off its hinges._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Remind me to send my Uncle a new door for Christmas,” Patty said, and they both tore ass back toward where they last saw Erin and Holtzmann._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________What was that Holtz had mentioned earlier about ‘safety in numbers…?’ Yea, about that… she _was _a genius, after all.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One of my personal favorite parts of this story is Holtz kinda losing her mind with Erin in trouble. Wherever that comes from it's deep-seated, an awakened beast.


	6. Y’all Wanna Play a Game?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I still see those scary guys when I am all alone at night,  
> I kiss the ring you gave me then I swing with all my might."  
> -Everclear, White Men In Black Suits

They could hear Erin screaming as they reentered the room.

The first thing they noticed was Holtz sitting on the floor looking dazed next to the shattered chandelier, only then did they notice the cloud that seemed to be screaming with Erin’s voice.

Abby and Patty ran to Holtz.

Lifting her up, Abby asked if she was ok.

“Yea, I’ll be fine.”

Holtz spotted the black eye that was inevitably forming on Abby’s visage, and pointed to it concernedly.

“Oh, this is nothing, you should see the other guy.“

“Hey, how about a little less conversation, a little more action, huh?” Patty was already focusing on the Erin thing. Like Holtzmann, she had no idea what to do to diffuse the current situation, mostly since she didn’t know how Erin had gotten into this mess, _or _what the details were.__

__“Holtzy, care to shed some light on this?” she called over her shoulder._ _

__Holtzmann gave them a quick rundown, leaving out her belly flop, of course._ _

__Just then, another cloud of electrical charges formed in front of them; it smelled super-ionized, and all the pieces came together into the shape of the pocket-sized pianist from downstairs._ _

__“Oh, crap...” frowned Abby._ _

__“I’m none too pleased to see you, either,” the ghost retorted._ _

__Erin screamed again as her host tipped her upside down._ _

__Holtz wreathed her fingers through her hair, nearly tearing her own curls out in panic, and let out a desperate whine, rocking from one foot to the other._ _

__“Why are you even here?" the ghost chided, “We were having so much fun without you!”_ _

__“They’re a bunch of party poopers!” the other one teased, having stopped shaking Erin to chime in._ _

__A stroke of inspiration finally hit Holtz. “Keep them talking,” she mouthed to Patty as she started to inch away from the group._ _

__With Holtz getting situated at a safer distance, Patty struggled to formulate an idea. How does one distract ghosts, exactly? Kid ghosts… kids… Ok, there we go._ _

__“Uh, hey, y’all wanna play a game?” Patty tried to fein enthusiasm, or friendliness, or some combination of the two._ _

__Piqued interest won out, “What are the terms?” the ghost inquired from above._ _

__“You’re gonna have to come on down and see,” Abby interposed, now understanding what Patty was trying to achieve. “Come closer, she’s not gonna keep yelling up to you!”_ _

__The ghost naively began to come down, Erin still in its grasp, to join its counterpart who was standing in front of the team, unimpressed, arms crossed like a brat._ _

__Holtz fired up the remote control on her armband, energizing a new device she had yet to test out in any practical fashion._ _

__Attached to her wrist was a nanoparticle gun capable of isolating and destroying the molecules that make up a ghost, specifically neutrinos, which are smaller than the atoms of the inhabitants of the physical world; in other words, “ghost particles."_ _

__Normally she would save a weapon like this as a last resort, after all, they enjoyed taking their work home with them, but dire times called for dire measures. She needed to take these punks out, and fast._ _

__The device whizzed to life and Holtz took careful aim at the ghost that was *not* currently entrapping the woman that occupied 99% of her thoughts these days, (only 99% because, science).__

____She kissed it for luck and let 'er rip..._ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want so badly to put up the next chapter, but I also don't want it to be over yet. Hope you guys are enjoying the suspense. I'll have another one up tomorrow. ;)


	7. You Don't Play Fair

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I cannot be without you, matter of fact,  
> I'm on your back."  
> \- Filter, Walking After You

Insulated inside her ghost cloud, Erin was privy to nothing that was happening elsewhere. She was only able to focus on two things, a) not dying of fright, and b) desperately trying not to worry why no one had rescued her yet.

She felt as though she had been in the ghost’s hold for an eternity...

Was anyone coming...? 

Was she already dead?

 

The blast extended out of Holtzmann’s arm and made direct contact with her desired target. 

A shockwave pulsed through the air and the ghost girl appeared to pulse along with it. 

The sound it made was hypnotic. Holtzmann had never seen anything like it before. 

The ghost let out a blood-curdling scream as the shockwave tore it apart, piece by piece, molecule by rippling molecule, vanishing into nothing... 

_Bingo ___

__She was gone._ _

__“ARRGGGGHHHHHGGGGG!!!!” The other ghost cried out in a sound of demonic agony upon seeing its playmate disintegrate, loosing Erin from his grip._ _

__He practically threw her in a tantrum. “YOU DON’T PLAY FAIR!” he screamed again._ _

__The first thing Erin saw in her liberation was light, the second thing she saw was the ground rushing swiftly up to greet her._ _

__She braced herself as she fell several feet to the floor, landing _hard _.___ _

____Watching Erin crumple to the ground, Holtzmann herself crumpled inside in a mix of relief and regret. She made a mental note to install air bags into their jumpsuits, like the kind some motorcycle jackets have that automatically deploy when tipped, because this whole ‘getting manhandled by ghosts’ thing was happening to them with increasing frequency._ _ _ _

____“Now!” Abby instructed, and she, Holtz, and Patty all set their proton guns to unload on the incorporeal being._ _ _ _

____They each fired, missing him time after time… Who was this guy?_ _ _ _

____The ghost swung down and picked up several chairs, projecting them through the air like an exploding chair grenade._ _ _ _

____No matter what they did, he was too quick, and now they were dodging projectiles, but they kept firing._ _ _ _

____Unfortunately, when you miss your target, that beam still goes _somewhere _, and in this case, the trajectory of their beams were making connection with the hall’s ceiling, weakening it with every pass.___ _ _ _

______The ghost noticed the structural damage, and decided to use it to his advantage; perhaps his fun wasn’t over just yet after all._ _ _ _ _ _

______Flying up to the ceiling, he burst through the cracked facade causing it to collapse under the effort._ _ _ _ _ _

______Plaster, beams, and glass all began crashing down._ _ _ _ _ _

______Erin had just barely recovered from her drop and wasn’t in the position to react to a catastrophic change in her environment like the ceiling coming down, and unfortunately, she was right in the path of the arriving debris._ _ _ _ _ _

_______"Erin..."_ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Whether or not Holtz exclaimed the beloved name out loud, or silently in her head, she didn’t know, because for the second time that day, Holtzmann’s mind short-circuited._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Without a second thought about it, she launched her tiny frame toward the redhead, shoving her out of the way to relative safety._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Holtzmann took the brunt of the ceiling's collapse, and was instantly buried face-down in rubble._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Struggling to lift herself from under the weight of the debris, she ultimately buckled, falling unconscious, weakened from the impact._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Holtz, no!” Abby and Patty screamed._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________This was enough to wake Erin from her stupor._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Turning in realization of what had happened, Erin sprinted through the dust and came to a sliding stop at Holtzmann’s lifeless body._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________She dropped to her knees and tried desperately to uncover her from the rubble... from the weight of her proton pack._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________There was some blood pooling from Holtz's nose and her face was ruddy with scrapes. Her glasses had been knocked off, Erin didn't know where, and her blonde hair was gritty with broken plaster and splinters. She didn't look like herself at all._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________While Erin dug, she was forced to recall the image of Holtz in the coffin earlier that day._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Her breath caught and she winced at the thought, feeling a wave of nausea creep up from the pit of her stomach._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________The potential weight of the situation was altogether suddenly very real in her mind._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________She thought about Holtz's comforting hand on her shoulder when they split into teams... of her promise not to let a ghost follow her home..._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Erin look out!” Patty cried, as the ghost charged in the direction of the vulnerable duo._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Erin spun around and adopted a stance that was half straddling, half kneeling, and 100% 'animal protecting an injured pack member' over Holtz._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Grabbing her proton gun from its holster, she managed to get off a single shot before the ghost was upon them._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________She missed, but still managed to piss him off even further._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________The errant blast caused the ghost to dodge, veereing off their course just enough to allow her ample time to recoup before it tried to make another pass._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Now that the ghost had a target, the other two Ghostbusters just _might _be able to lock onto their mark for once.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Erin and the unconscious Holtzmann were now, unfortunately, bait…. for the moment, anyway._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter kills me. I hope you're enjoying the story so far, I mean, as much as you can enjoy the wringer I'm running Holtzmann and Erin through. Ugh. Lemme know what you think, if you're so inclined. Thanks for reading. Happy Friday. :)


	8. Holtz, Don't Go

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Everything is light, everything is warmth, everything is electricity, everything is a magnetic field, everything is you.”  
> ― L.H.

"Patty, light him up!" Abby yelled, firing her proton pack in the same direction. There was no time to waste.

This time their beams caught the ghost tight, but he was strong. Boy was he strong.

Now in their streams, the ghost suddenly shone brighter, as though it was actually drawing power from the molecular manacles. Erin sounded off an audible "What the...?"

It raised its arms toward the sky and, in anger, let rip what can only be described as a lightning bolt, like he was Zeus himself.

This ghost was not a class 4, that’s for sure, maybe more like a class 5... heck, it may even be in a class by itself. That little dude sure packed a punch.

The energy that radiated off the blast was strong enough to knock all three standing Ghostbusters off their feet, Patty and Abby losing their grip on the ghost, tumbling backwards into the hazard of chairs behind them, and Erin falling chest-down on top of Holtz, shielding her from whatever might happen next.

What neither the ghost or any of them were able to predict, was that because the atmosphere was already supercharged by the electrical storm that was building outside, the path the ghost tore through said atmosphere made for a pretty convenient conduit for an opposing energy to return.

In other words, when the ghost shot up at the sky, the sky was bound to shoot back.

The ghost laughed triumphantly, though a bit prematurely, as a lightning bolt zig-zagged into the hall from the looming clouds above, striking the ghost and stunning it.

The number of ways this could have panned out were many, and while none of the Ghostbusters were gamblers by nature, Holtz being an obvious exception, they were certainly going to pick up some lottery tickets on their way back to the firehouse after that stroke of luck.

Taking advantage of its stunned state, the trio all turned their attentions back to the specter, firing upon it once again, trying to keep a hold on it this time. 

It howled and thrashed, unable to break free in its weakened state.

Moving quickly, Erin detached Holtz’s ghost trap from her pack and threw it in the apparition’s direction. She flipped the switches on her unconscious colleagues’s armband, and deployed the unit’s foot pedal, readying it for engagement.

Without hesitation, Erin stomped the pedal, opening the unit, and the Ghostbusting team wrangled the dangerous wraith down into submission.

"You don't play nice! You don't play nice!" the ghost squealed, terrified, struggling against their efforts as he was forced closer to the ghost trap.

"I think _someone _needs a time out!" scolded Abby.__

__Not even bothering with a countdown, Erin snapped the lid closed at her first opportunity, and all manner of sparks followed the phantom into its cell, leaving the room more quiet than they had yet encountered it at any point that day._ _

__Patty, Abby, and Erin all looked at one another, completely shell-shocked and breathless, taking in their surroundings._ _

__It was done. It was finally done._ _

__Erin craned her neck back and looked up just as the sky cracked open, letting down a soft shower of raindrops through the roof’s gaping rift._ _

__Abby turned to Patty, “Looks like we’re gonna need to send your uncle more than a door for Christmas.”_ _

__“Holtz…” Erin gasped._ _

__She turned around, throwing off her pack and kneeling down next to Jillian in one fluid motion. The other two joined her and they dug Holtzmann out from the remaining rubble._ _

__Erin gathered Holtz into her arms, turning her over in her lap. She appeared unconscious and her breathing was labored. There were blood stains peppering her jumpsuit beneath the places where tiny glass shards had unmistakably made contact._ _

__"She needs help..." Erin looked to Patty and Abby, her eyes saying more than her lips could._ _

__The rain came down softly onto Holtzmann’s face, washing off the dirt and the blood. Erin helped to wipe it all away gently with her fingertips._ _

___…would that she could wipe the whole day away with just a brush of her fingertips... ____ _

____' _No good memories could be attached to a place like this _,' echoed in her head again.___ _ _ _

______Heavy drops trickled down Erin’s forehead and crossed streams with those being produced from her eyes; together they ran off the tip of her nose onto the blonde’s jumpsuit just above her heart; just beneath her name._ _ _ _ _ _

______There was no science that could explain away the pain Erin felt in her own chest when she realized the sacrifice Holtz had made to save them… to save her._ _ _ _ _ _

_______Who was going to save her now? ____ _ _ _ _ _

________“Please, stay with me. Holtz, don’t go...” she whispered, rubbing a thumb across Holtz's cheek. “We need you here. I need you. Holtz, wake up… please, wake up…”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________She closed her eyes, helpless._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________After an eternity disguised as a single moment, a weak voice whimpered up from her arms, “Five more minutes…?"_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________Erin’s eyes shot open to meet the baby blues of her knight in shining khaki softly blinking back up at her._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________As if it were her life fuel to do so, Erin started kissing every inch of Holtz’ face in celebration, squeezing her tighter as though she was never going to let her go. Holtz choked out a laugh at the sudden burst of affection. It hurt to laugh._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“Hey, hey, gentle, gentle there, Er. That precious package is labeled ‘fragile,'“ a smiling Abby reminded her, kneeling down to place Holtz's newly-found glasses back on her face. They were surprisingly in better shape than the engineer was herself._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________"Ooh, sorry..." Erin grimaced down at Holtz with slight embarrassment and loosened the embrace._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

________“I think I side with the ghost, Abby, you _are _a party pooper,” Holtzmann simpered, one eye squeezed shut, trying to get up.___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________“Baby, you better stay down or Imma give you a reason to stay down,” threatened Patty as she ended a call on her phone. “The paramedics are on their way.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

__________Jillian sunk back down into Erin’s lap. “Well, there _are _worse places to wait… you won’t hear me complaining."___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________Holtz winked at Erin._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________And, just like that, Erin found herself saved all over again._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for reading, and for the lovely notes, and *all* the kudos!! This whole story stemmed off of a simple prompt I saw that said "You squeeze the hand of a loved one who is in a casket. They squeeze back." I thought that had "Holtz" written all over it. This'll be the first in a series, and I look forward to exploring the character developments and relationships of these characters I have grown to love so much. AND, congrats to Kate on her Emmy tonight, I know everyone's still high off that. Thank you again, everybody. Please let me know what you thought. :) Have a great week, everyone.

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first FanFic. I had never read any until Ghostbusters, but now I think I've read them all. Thank you all, sincerely, for inspiring me to write my first piece. Sorry if the first half worried anyone, I hope the payoff was worth it. I had fun writing this chapter, I hope you had fun reading it. And, if you feel so inclined, do leave a note and tell me how I'm doing.


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